Knitting machine



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KNITTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 5, 1950 17 Sheets-Sheet l6 INVENTOR WZMMJuly 12, 193 2. A v. LOMBARDI v KNiTTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 5, 1930 17Sheets-Sheet 17 I ummmulumwnmmMMME @111 1 M A'ITNEY T Patented July 12,1932 I VINCENT LOMBARDI, F BROOKLYNyNEW YORK 7- KNITTING MACHINEApplication filed August 5, 1930. Serial No. 473312.

This invention relates to knitting machines and includes certaincorrelated inventions and discoveries appertaining thereto.

An object of the invention is to provide a 6 knitting machine whereby alarge number of varied pattern effects may be readily and tfecgnomicallyincorporated into a knitted a no.

In its more specific aspects, the invention pattern-controllingactuations to a series of needles.

An additional object is to provide a knitting machine which is simple inconstruction, economical of manufacture and assembly, readilyadjustable, capable of a wide variety of uses, and adapted for ready andeflicient operation.

Another object is to provide an improved pattern control mechanismcapable of being operated by a simpler type of pattern-determiningmedium, such as a perforated strip of paper, than has heretofore beenemployed and in which for example a change in the characteristics of thesaid, medium is required only when a change is desired in the saidmechanism.

Still another object is to provide improved apparatus for wiping out thepattern in any desiredpart of the fabric to be knitted,

which pattern would otherwise be incorporated therein under the controlof the pattern-determining medium.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction,combination of elements and arrangement of parts, which will beexemplified in the constructions hereinafter set forth and the scope ofthe application of which will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the inventionreference should be had to the following detailed description taken inconnection with the accompanying 53 drawings, in which:

. mg cams and used as a knitted.

Fig; 1 is a top view of a machine embodying the invention;

Figs. 2, 4 and 6 when placed side by side represent in schematic form aportion of the needle-lay-out along with the controlling cams,pattern-controlling mechanism and means for wiping out the pattern;

Fig. 3 is a schematic representation of the pattern iping out mechanismwhich is ihown ope ting on the needle jacks of Fig. 5 is a schematicrepresentation of the pattern controlling drum and associated apparatuswhich is shown operating on the needle jacks of Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged sectional view of the pattern control mechanismfor determining the pattern for any desired portion of the fabric to beknitted.

Fig. 8 is a top view of the control drum of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 represents a drum cylinder carrypart of the mechanism of Fig. 7;

Fig. 10 is a schematic lay-out of the cams on the cylinder of Fig. 9;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged sectional view of the mechanism for wipin out thepattern in any desired portion o the fabric to be- Fig. .12 is a crosssectional view of-the control drum of Fig. 11; 7

Figs. 13 and 14 illustrate details of certain portions of the movableparts linking the drum of Fig. 12 to the cams for the needle jacks; 1

Figs. 15 and 16 illustrate other details of certain movable partscontrolled by the drum of Fig. 12 and controlling cams for the needle'acks 1 Figs. 17, 1s, 19, 20-, 20a, 21 and 22 represent sectional viewsof a needle and needle jack along with the various cams and controllingapparatus therefor;

Fig. 23 is a top view of an alternative form of a circular knittingmachine embodying this invention; 7

Fig. 24 is an enlarged sectional view of the mechanism of Fig. 23 forwiping out the pat- 10c tern in any desired portion of the fabric to beknitted;

Fig. 25 illustrates details of certain portions of the movable partslinking the wiping out drum of Fig. 24 to the cams which control theneedle jacks;

Fig. 26 illustrates certain of the pivoted levers associated with thedrum of Fig. 24;

Fig. 27 illustrates the manner in which the drum of Fig. 24 may bestepped periodically in different parts of the machine;

Fig. 28 illustrates the manner in which the drum of Fig. 24 may be givenone complete revolution in order to selectively set each slidableelement thereon;

Fig. 29 represents another embodiment of this invention in which thewiping out mech anism is controlled by an endless chain instead of aperforated pattern;

Fig. 30 is a sectional view of certain portions of the machine of Fig.29;

Fig. 31 represents one pattern effect that mag be produced by thepresent invention; an

Figs. 32 and 33 represent still another alternative pattern effect thatmay be incorf porated into the fabric.

Fig. 1 discloses a top view of a circular knitting machine of thecylinder type embodying the present invention. The machine is assumed tohave four yarn feeds, 260, 261, 262, and 263 and four verticallydisposed pattern drums 166, 243, 244, and 245, one for each yarn feed,are provided for determining the pattern effects to be incorporated inthe fabric by the needles for each yarn. Each of these drums is mountedfor movement around the needle cylinder 102 and rotating on its axis inresponse to this movement. These drums are an improvement upon andperform the same general functions as the pattern drums of my U. S.Patent No. 1,792,647 issued Feb. 17, 1931 and entitled Knittingmachines. Each of these pattern drums, contains elements which in turnare given pattern determining actuations by apparatus controlled by apattern sheet mounted on a drum 61. The machine of Fig. 1 also in-.cludes four horizontally disposed drums 137,

247, 246 and 248 for wiping out the pattern settings of the needle jacksfor any portion ofthe fabric whenever such an action is desired. Thuspattern drum 166 may selectively set the needle jacks to give aparticular pattern effect in one portion of the machine and the wipingout drum 137 which immediately follows may wipe out these patterneffects before the passage of the yarn carrier for which the patternsettings are made. It may be assumed by way of-example that the cylinderneedles of the machine of Fig. 1 are divided into eight equal groups andthat the pattern to be knitted is repeated at least eight times in theresulting tubular fabric. These sections for convenience have beennumbered follows each 1A, 2B, 3-A, 4-B, 5-A, 6 -B, 7A, and 8B. Forreasons to be described later the needle jacks in the A sections aredifferent from those in the B sections. Thus the pattern drum for eachyarn feed may cause the same particular pattern effect to appear in allof the eight sections except in those sections where the pattern mayhave been wiped-out by the wiping out drum which each wiping out drum isobtained from a pattern sheet mounted on drum 250. Further details ofthe general plan of the machine of Fig. 1 willbe apparent after adescription of certain subsequent figures has been given.

The apparatus for enabling the knitting of the needles to beautomatically determined by the pattern medium such as a perforatedpaper pattern strip 60, will now be described particularly withreference to Fig. 7. The controlling apparatus immediately adjacent thepattern strip 60 is quite similar to the, apparatus disclosed in my U.S. Patent No. 1,792,647, to which reference is made. The pattern strip60 is mounted on a rotatable drum 61 mounted on a stationary part of themachine and arranged by suitable apparatus to be given a step-by-stepmovement at proper intervals. Two sets of pivoted levers, 63, 64 areassociated with the pattern sheet. The fingers 62 of the set of levers63 are adapted to be periodically raised away and subsequently loweredto either contact with the pattern sheet or pass through perforationstherein. A rotating cam 71 periodically lifts the arm 7 O, pivoted atits upper end, to cause the rod 69, to rotate each lever 64 a smalldistance in a clockwise direction, which will cause one end 72 of thelever to raise the fingers 62 away from the pattern. These fingers arenormally biased by springs 68 inside the housing 67. If a finger 62 isresting at any particular time on top of the paper pattern the other endof lever 63 is against shoulder 66, but if a finger 62 should find ahole in the pattern the opposite end of that lever 63 would rest againstshoulder 65. The lower end of each lever 64 is apertured through which asmall hollow rod 81 passes, having an adjustable stop 7 5 on one end andan adjustable nut 74' on the pther end. A spring 73 tends to keep end 76of the lever against the stop 75. A wire 77 passing through the tube 81and fastened by a set screw in stop leads to a bell crank lever 78pivoted at the point 79. The other arm of this bell crank lever 78 restsin a socket in the lower end of a vertical jack 80 which is located inan external slot of the stationary cylinder 82.

The upper end of each jack 80 has a cam projection 83 so that the jacks80 may be periodically raised by a rotating cam 84. It will be apparentthat after the passa e of cam 84 each jack 80 corresponding to a fingerpattern drum. The setting of a raised position.

which found a perforationin the pattern sheet will remain elevated whilethose jacks corresponding to fingers finding no holes will be loweredagain due to the action of springs 73.

.The pattern determining actuations of acks 80 are transferredto theneedle jacks y a special mechanism 166 now to be de of each element 89has a projection 90 whichis adapted at times to contact with the part 91of one of the jacks 80.

A cam cylinder 92 is mounted on shaft 86 in a non-rotatable manner andthe details thereof are disclosed more particularly in Fig. 9 to whichreference is made. Several cams are mounted on the cylinder 92 whichcooperate with projections 93 on the slidable elements to give desiredactuations thereto. If we assume an element 89 with it projection 93 inits upper and inner position, having been pushed in by a jack 80 it willride on top of cam 96 but will be lowered by cam 97 and then pushedoutwardly by cam 98 so that it is left in its lowered and outer positionuntil a change is desired, when the said change will be made by thepattern sheet 60. The said projection 93 has therefore been changed froman upper and inner position to its lower and outer position. On theother hand, if we assume an element 89 with its projection 93 in itslowered andinner position, the said element 89 will be further loweredby cam 96 and will not bc'aifected by cam 98 but will be raised by cam94 and then pushed outwardly by cam to its upper and outer position.Once the slidable element 89 has been given a selective inner setting-bypattern sheet 60, the rotation of the sildable element around the camcylinder 92 will cause the cams on cylinder 92 to raise those elements89 that were previously in a lowered positon and will lower those thatwere previously in This means thatthe slidable elements once they havebeen selectively set and operated upon by cam cylinder 92 will continueto have that setting unt'l a different setting is desired, i. e.: theelements 89 do not have to be set for each revolution around the needlecylinder as long as no change in-the pattern is desired. For example ifone projection 93 is in its upper and outer position because itscorresponding finger 62 found a hole in pattern 60, it will remain inits upper position until itscorresponding finger 62 encounters anotherhole in the pattern (which may not occur until the cylinder 61 has beenstepped several times), whereupon it will be pushed in by jack 80 andthen changed to a lowered positionby cam cylinder 92. It will now remainin a lowered and outer position until its finger 62 encounters anotherhole later in the patv tern sheet 60 whereupon the projection 93 will bepushed in by its jack 80 and then changed to its upper position by camcylinder.

The pattern sheet 60 is therefore of novel design in that a hole isinserted therein along a line parallel to its length only when a changein the knitting of a particular'needle is desired. Thus, for example thefirst hole in such a row under one finger 62 may mean that its needlewill knit. This needle will continue to knit until a second hole appearsin the 'pattern under said finger whereupon the said needle willinterlock and continue to interlock until a third hole appears.

This

reduces considerably the number of holes required in a pattern sheet toproduce a given pattern.

The manner in which the cams on cylinder 92 operate is illustratedschematically in Fig. 10. The projections 93 that are in their inwardpositions are shown as solid rectangles in Fig. 10, while the unfilledrectangles 93 represent projections 93 in their outer postions.

Each element 89 at its upper end has a projection 99 which is adapted tocontact with a projection 100 on a needle ack 101 to push.

the needle jack inwardly into its slot in the needle cylinder 102providing the said element 89 is in its raised position. If however anyelement 89 is in its lowered position it will not actuate itscorresponding needle jack. The upper and lower positions of projections99 are separated by a thin semi-annular plate 103 which insur s that atthe t me each element 89 is adjacent the needle .jacks there will be nodanger that some slidable elements 89 will be at an undesired height.This plate 103 does not rotate with the drums 87, 88 but is stationaryin the designated position as it is carried with the shaft 86 around theneedle cylinder 102.

The outer projections 104 on the slidable elements 89 may be used attimes in connection with the setting of the elements 89 by the manuallyoperated cams 105 and 106, see Figs. 7, 8, and 10. If cam 106 is screwedin to be in operative position, it will contact with butts 104 on allslidable elements 89 in an upper position so that all those projections93 which before the actuation by cam 106were in their upper outerpositions will be placed in their lower outer positions by thesubsequent operation of came. 97 and 98. Those projections 93 which atthe time of the placing of cum, 106 into operation were in their lowerouter positions will of course remain there and those that happened tobe in their lower inner positions

